De Grasse's quest for 1st Diamond League Trophy and other track and field storylines

The last time most Canadians saw Andre De Grasse on the track, he was putting the finishing touches on a second consecutive three-medal performance at the Olympics.

It began in Tokyo with a personal-best 9.89 seconds for bronze in the 100 metres as De Grasse matched his Summer Games effort from five years earlier in Rio and became the first Canadian to win multiple Olympic medals in the event.

It ended with the Markham, Ont., sprinter earning bronze in the 100 relay with Aaron Brown, Brendon Rodney and Jerome Blake to become Canada's most decorated male Olympian. They recently had the medal upgraded to silver after Great Britain, which finished 1-100th of a second behind Italy, was disqualified following CJ Ujah's doping violation.

In between, De Grasse won the first gold medal of his Olympic career and first by a Canadian in the 200 since 1928, setting a national record time of 19.62. Blake was blown away at how De Grasse could run so fast after only four 200s earlier in 2021.

"He's like [retired sprinter] Usain Bolt or [NBA star] LeBron [James]. They never worry about the regular season," Blake, who will oppose world No. 2-ranked De Grasse and Brown in the 200 at Friday's Diamond League season opener in Doha, Qatar, said recently between training sessions in Florida. "They're [all] championship players and that's when they come alive.

"That's where you want to thrive and perform at your best, in a championship setting. It's [about] how you perform when it matters most."

Also in Friday's field is 2020 Olympic bronze medallist and reigning world champion Noah Lyles and fellow American Fred Kerley, who ran 19.80 on April 16 at the USATF Golden Games, second only this season to teammate Erriyon Knighton (19.49).

While some